Titanic
by Nejiten1210
Summary: Lei Fang's crying. It couldn't have been the movie. They haven't jumped yet. Heck, it hasn't even sunk!


Titanic

"Must we?" Jann Lee asked, looking from above the newspapers. Lei Fang managed a small smile. "It's just for 194 minutes." She reasoned. "Besides, I've already bought the tickets." She said, waving them. Her husband looked at her, then at the movie tickets before turning back to her, into her pleading eyes.

He sighed. "Alright." He said, getting up and folding the papers neatly. "Thank you." She replied, pecking him on the cheek before grabbing the house keys. The couple wore their coats and stepped out of the house and locking it.

They made it to the cinema a few blocks away with ease. The movie attendant led them to Screening Room 3 that was airing "Titanic". He then guided them to their seats and left, after bowing and saying, "Enjoy the show." The pair sat quietly in the screening room and waited for the other viewers.

"Beep! Beep!" someone's phone rang. Jann Lee quickly rummaged his pockets before pulling out a black mobile phone. He pressed the answer button and placed the phone next to his ear.

"Yeah?" he answered. A reply came from the other line. "Out." He said. "Sorry, I'm busy." He turned to look at his wife. "I'm with Lei." The caller must have said something wrong because Jann Lee sighed and shook his head. "We're still coping." He said, squeezing Lei Fang's hand. Chatters came from the other line. "We'll see." He replied, before ending the call and switching the phone off. His attention now belongs to her.

"Who's that?" she asked. "Zack." He replied, stuffing the mobile phone back in his pocket. "He wants us to join the others for another group reunion." He turned to look around the room. There weren't many people, only six other couples besides them and a large group of girls sitting in the back row.

The lights dimmed and everyone focused on the large screen. Half an hour later, he heard someone sobbing on his right. Lei Fang's crying. It couldn't have been the movie. They haven't jumped yet. Heck, it hasn't even sunk! Suddenly, it dawned on him. He knew why she dragged him here in the first place.

He and Lei Fang had gotten married two years ago. They were a relatively young couple, having gotten married when he was 25, she was 24 at that time. Not much had changed since they were wed. Jann Lee still kept his job as a bouncer, but he was more careful this time when dealing with troublemakers. On the other hand, Lei Fang rejected all her luxurious job opportunities and worked as a bartender in the same bar as her husband. Her colleagues fancied her and admired her optimists and called her 大嫂 [dà sǎo (elder sister in law)] in respect of Jann Lee. Their tournament fighter friends will often hang out in that bar and chat with them endlessly. Although busy, Jann Lee and Lei Fang will get home early before 2am.

They bought a small apartment for themselves, decorated it, and called it their home. Often, they would think how lucky they were, to be blessed with such happiness, and what more could possibly happen. The Lei Fang announced that she was pregnant.

Jann Lee glowed with pride and hugged her tightly, being careful not to squash their unborn child. Tina was ecstatic and claimed herself to be the kid's aunt. Hayate and his best friend, Hayabusa, presented the pair a baby crib. Kasumi and Ayane bought them a complete set of baby suits. Jann Lee frowned at the thought of his son wearing a deer suit, with antlers and hooves and all. Not to mention the other ones like a cow or a chick or a frog. Lei Fang reckons it's a girl, but merely laughs and accepted the gift happily all the same.

Zack got them diapers as a joke. The Armstrong pair gave the soon to be parents a soft, comfy blanket for the baby. Helena gave them a big, fat teddy bear for the little one to play with. The others offered their congratulations. They spent the whole afternoon deciding whether the baby will take after its mother or father.

Then Bass Armstrong popped the question whether they will teach the kid Jeet Kun Do, following Jann Lee, or Tai Chi Quan, after Lei Fang. Kasumi says it's neither. They will teach the child a _mixture_ of it, Jeet Chin Quan of Tai Chun Do, as Zack calls it. Helena had also offered to teach the child her style of martial arts. Tina joked that if everyone taught the kid their own fighting skills, the kid is going to grow up to be a killer machine.

Jann Lee and Lei Fang did all the things expecting parents did. They decorated the room, bought books on parenting, stared at her stomach, and picked out names for the baby from the book. It seemed like a fairytale, a fantasy, just created and moulded out for the both of them.

Lei Fang had maternity leave from her boss, who was also happy for the pair. She was left in Helena's good care, and that seems to ease Jann Lee's anxiousness, after trying endlessly for hours to coax her husband that she'll be fine.

Then, _it _happened. One day, while shopping for baby clothes with the opera singer, Lei Fang started feeling sharp pains in her stomach. They churned and they raged and they boiled in her body. Blood began to soak her pants and run thin spider web trails down her legs.

She felt scared. Helena started panicking. Shop owners rushed about to help her. Passerbys crowded round to check what was going on. Lei Fang passed out, the last thing she remembered seeing was Helena's concerned face.

He was on first shift when his phone rang. He was surprised that it was Helena instead of Lei Fang dialling him. Hurriedly, she explained the situation to him. The Jeet Kun Do master quickly dashed to the hospital his wife was admitted in as a replacement was sent.

And when he found Helena waiting at the door, her face was immediately apologetic. Before the words even left her lips, he knew.

"I'm sorry."

He punched the nearest tree and broke the deco in two, shocking all of the people nearby. Helena bit her lower lip and turned away.

When she woke up in the sterile hospital room, she saw his face. Tough, like it always was, but his eyes hinted ultimate grief. He was never good at hiding emotions from her. He knew. She knew. Lei Fang learned, in Psychology, that the eyes reflect the emotions.

Her lips quivered and her body trembled. She felt her heart sink as if the world was pulled from under her. She knew. She just knew. Unable to hold it, she launched herself into his arms, crying. Quietly and consolingly, he caught her and embraced her, telling her it was okay as he caressed her hair. It was a stupid lie, and the both of them knew.

Helena peeked through the cracks of the curtains. She felt the weight of their combined grief. And it somehow crushed her. Badly. Deeply. More than any heavy concrete does. The doctor thinks it could be their previous careers as the Dead Or Alive tournament fighters.

After that, there were the sympathy letters and the quiet pitying stares. They locked the doors, and didn't leave the house as they mourned the joy of their life. The crib was locked away, the walls painted over, the books put away and forgotten. The teddy bear was left to collect dust and the baby suits were stored in a box. Their house felt like the joy has been sucked out, and only the memory of crushing loss remained.

That was six months ago. At that time, Lei Fang had been two months pregnant. If it had survived, they would've been frantically preparing for its arrival next month. Jann Lee did like the idea of a winter baby.

However, life moves on and gradually, normalcy flowed slowly back into their lives. Jann Lee went back to work as usual and Lei Fang put on a mask in front of their customers. But she was never the same after that terrible incident. He had suggested trying again, but the haunted look on her face forced the topic down and they never spoke of it again.

That was months ago. He had thought by now she would have gotten over it, but looking at her closely, he suspected she just pushed it down. Though he had accepted the loss of their unborn child, he supposed she was still adjusting to the idea. After all, she was closer to him, or her, since she was the one carrying it.

They went out shopping last week in search of a new refrigerator to replace the broken one at home. Lei Fang saw a small baby crying in his stroller. She held her arms out to him and his mother placed him in there. Immediately, she started crying and hugged the child tightly.

Jann Lee adverted his gaze to his side, hiding the pain the old wound opened. The child stopped crying. He looked up at the lady carrying him and sensed her grief. He then placed both of his chubby hands on her cheeks and gave her a small feeble toothless smile. His mother gave them a sympathetic smile and let Lei Fang cradle him a little longer.

The short erratic sounds of her sniffling brought him back to the present day. She had begun crying again, her arms cradling what would have been a swollen stomach. He leaned in and grabbed her hand, pondering at the soft thing she gripped in her fist. He pried the thin gently from her reluctant fingers and held it up where the light shone to see better.

It's a white mitten. A project Lei Fang painstakingly started six months ago. She said it was a unisex colour. Besides, it matches the season of their baby's birth. She had only finished one side of it.

Sighing, he closed the gap between them and let his arm wrap around her waist. Resting his chin on her head, he held her close and felt her shoulders relax ever so slightly against him. He would have to call Zack later and cancel the invitation, again.

That guy has a nice heart. He was the glue that brought everyone together. When he heard about the disastrous news, he quickly planned a reunion gathering, hoping it'll subside the pain, only to be rejected many times.

Under her breath, she muttered, "I hate this movie. It makes me want to cry." Breathing in her scent, he let his warmth flow into her body as he held her gently. He looked up at the screen to see the two protagonists on the ship's deck, enjoying the sunset. He smiled. "Stupid Titanic." He agreed.


End file.
